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Diabetes-An Epidemic?

Recently on ABC World News Charlie Gibson did a story that kind of surprised me. He announced to his audience that Diabetes has become an epidemic in the U.S.-NO ****!!

I am just one little diabetic that started a website to share my experiences with others and share that knowledge and in the process learn more about this terrible disease. I have been calling it an epidemic for a year now. It is so obvious. C’mon ABC tell us something we don’t know.

Diabetes is a disease that affects 7% or 21 Million Americans and claims 240 million victims worldwide. Type 2 Diabetes is the biggest portion of those at 95 %. Another 14 million Americans have pre-diabetes where their blood sugars are elevated but below Diabetic levels.
Diabetes is a disorder of metabolism–the way our bodies use digested food for growth and energy. Most of the food we eat is broken down into glucose, the form of sugar in the blood. Glucose is the main source of fuel for the body.

For those who already have some risk factors such as a family history of it type 2 Diabetes is largely caused by elements in your lifestyle such as overeating and being overweight. Unless you have been hiding under a rock you already know that obesity in the U.S. is huge. GET THE CONNECTION? DUH!!

The story went on to tell us that the costs now in the U.S. are $116 billion for medical and an additional $58 billion in lost productivity due to absences from work. That’s a whopping $174 billion!! The U.S. alone spends $1 billion on diabetes research.

Whoa wait a minute-this news bulletin just in: DIABETES IS A WORLDWIDE EPIDEMIC.

In some countries, for example developing far eastern ones, Diabetes is growing much faster than it is in the U.S. largely due to western influences on diet. Folks all over are getting fat. Just got done ’skyping’ with a new friend in China who tells me 10% of the population has it. That’s worse than the U.S. at 7%.

I have this theory too that as we get more into the internet age we become more hooked on sitting on our butts surfing or working at our computers. This inactivity leads to diabetes as well. You want a story Charlie? Talk about that!

The ABC story went on to discuss how band surgery is becoming a preferred way to manage the problem. We don’t want to do the simple things like exercise and change our diet now do we? Let’s get some surgery. It is just another way to keep the economy going. Why change our lifestyle when we can have some surgery?

Exercise of 30 min a day 5-6 days a week and a weight loss of 10% are the commonly accepted ways to get control of Diabetes. Try it-it’s cheaper than surgery.

To find out more about Diabetes check the link below.

Jack Krohn has had Diabetes, Pre-diabetes and Syndrome X for nearly fifteen years. He speaks from the experiences he has had during that time. He owns SECURITY SOLUTIONS a one stop resource that provides solutions and answers for all your self defense and home security problems.

Written on 16 October 2007 by admin under Medical News with No Comments

Laparoscopy Endometriosis Treatment

Your infertility specialist may recommend laparoscopy to diagnose and treat endometriosis. Laparoscopy is a relatively non-invasive procedure, especially in the diagnostic phase of your infertility treatment. It can be a lot more invasive, and can be considered a major surgery when it is used to treat endometriosis.
To perform a laparoscopic procedure, your doctor will make a small incision near your navel. Your abdomen will be filled with carbon dioxide to inflate it. This allows the doctor to then insert the laparoscope and inspect your reproductive organs and abdominal cavity. The inflation gives the doctor plenty of room to look around. Your body may be tilted back during the procedure so that your intestines and other organs will shift higher up into your body. This gives the surgeon a more clear view of your reproductive organs.

The laparoscope itself is like a tiny, long telescope. It projects a light into your body so that the surgeon can look around. Your doctor may need to make a second incision near your pubic bone to insert other surgical tools. Endometriosis may be quite visible, but sometimes it is not visible to the naked eye. Your surgeon may take biopsies of tissue from your body during the laparoscopic procedure. The tissues will be examined under a microscope to confirm or deny the presence of endometriosis.

Endometriosis is a condition that causes the endometrium, normally lining your uterus, to grow outside of the uterus and attach itself to surrounding structures and organs. Adhesions and scar tissue can form inside of your abdominal and pelvic regions, causing a lot of pain, discomfort and fertility problems. Endometriosis can be mild and may not be discovered until a laparoscopic procedure is performed. If endometriosis affects your ovaries or fallopian tubes, then it can keep eggs from passing through to your uterus for implantation. Endometriosis is a progressive condition and can get worse over time.

Symptoms of endometriosis include abnormally heavy bleeding during menstruation, extremely painful menstrual cramps that last for days, back pain, painful intercourse, urination or defecation. These symptoms can be very similar to other infections or disorders. Therefore, endometriosis may be overlooked until infertility is a concern.

If endometriosis is discovered, your infertility specialist can use laparoscopy as part of the surgical treatment. A pelvis afflicted by endometriosis can also include adhesions, cysts, scar tissue and endometrial implants. Your surgeon will attempt to remove endometrial implants, drain cysts, separate and loosen adhesions and scar tissue. Laser treatment may be used to cut away adhesions, scar tissue and cysts.

Laparoscopy used to treat endometriosis is considered a major surgical procedure, but because of the small incisions made and the state of the art techniques used, there is generally a fast recovery with minimal discomfort after the procedure. Talk to your doctor and discover if laparoscopy endometriosis treatment can help you be on your way to fertility.

Written on 05 October 2007 by admin under Laparoscopy, Medical News with No Comments

Insurance Coverage for Infertility Treatment

Many couples face infertility. This is a very emotional obstacle to overcome. In addition to the mental strength that you’ll need to conjure, you will also need money. Some infertility treatments can be very expensive for most couples. Your intense desire to have children can make infertility treatment seem like more of a necessity than a desire in your life. Many couples who simply can’t afford the treatment that they need, will start to look elsewhere for financial help. This is where the question of insurance comes in.
Insurance coverage for couples seeking infertility treatment may be hard to come by. The first thing you need to do is contact your employer or insurance company for a copy of your insurance coverage contract. Some contracts will specifically exclude infertility treatment as covered by the policy. If not, then you may have a case to get your infertility treatment covered.

Sometimes, there will be a specific list of treatments not covered. Check to see if the actual diagnosis is excluded. Laparoscopic procedures and hysterosalpingograms can be considered diagnostic, especially if you are experiencing abdominal pain or heavy bleeding. If your insurance denies a claim for these procedures and your contract simply excludes infertility treatment, then you have a case to get the procedures covered. Keep in mind that insurance companies are only allowed to deny claims for things that are specifically excluded on the contract.

Meeting with an infertility specialist and getting the diagnostic procedures may be covered by your insurance without question. Once you have been informed of your possible causes of infertility, then a good infertility doctor will consider your insurance coverage when developing treatment recommendations. You can decide with the help of the specialist which routes to take. Do you want to go with an aggressive procedure that may cost you more up front, but can improve your chances of conceiving more quickly? Would you rather go for the cheapest options first and see if any of them work? Either way, it can be expensive and these decisions will ultimately be yours to make.

If you are denied coverage for a procedure or visit that you believe should be covered, then ask your insurance company for contractual proof in writing that the claim is justifiably not covered. If they claim that your infertility treatment or diagnosis is not medically necessary or that infertility is not an illness, then you can still fight it. Keep track of all conversations that you have with your insurance company. Communications should be in writing whenever possible. Many will try to slip through a loophole and deny coverage that you paid for. If it’s not specifically noted as a procedure that is not covered, then it often will be covered by your insurance.

Some states require insurance companies to cover infertility treatments, such as in vitro fertilization (IVF). Keep in mind that there are many exclusions to these state mandates (such as self insured companies and having less than 50 company employees with medical insurance benefits), so check your state mandates to be sure that you know the extent of your insurance coverage. Some insurance companies will ask for documentation from your doctor that you have been infertile for one or two years before they will consider infertility treatment necessary, so make sure that you are working with your doctor early on. If you are running into walls when trying to get your infertility treatment covered, then contact an attorney familiar with insurance claims to help you come up with the best solution.

Written on 29 September 2007 by admin under Health Insurance, Medical News with No Comments

Making Sense of Your Body’s Signs

Have you ever noticed things about your body that are annoying, weird, smelly, or downright embarrassing? If so, you’re not alone. We all experience the often unsightly and sometimes unseemly signs and signals our bodies send us about our state of health. Ugly growths may pop up on our eyelids, or skin tags under our breasts. Our nails may be yellow or our partners may complain that we smell like ammonia.
Fortunately, many of these “body signs” are harmless and can be ignored or treated cosmetically. But sometimes what may seem like a cosmetic concern is more than meets the eye. The ugly growths on your eyelids may be xantelasmas, tiny deposits of cholesterol forewarning you that you may have high cholesterol and be at risk for heart disease. Unsightly skin tags — a common sign of aging — may signal diabetes. Yellowed nails may be nicotine stains, but they can also be warning signs of a lung or liver disorder. And while the ammonia-like odor you give off may mean you should hire a cleaning service, it can also mean that you’re eating too much protein, or you have Helicobacter pyelori bacteria, the bug that causes stomach ulcers.

Body signs can be seen, heard, tasted, felt, or smelled by you or others. Before modern diagnostic techniques, doctors had to rely on what their own and their patient’s five senses revealed to them. They listened to patients’ hearts, felt their pulses, looked at their tongues, eye-balled their eyes, inspected their hair, skin, and nails, smelled their smells, studied their stools, and sniffed or sometimes even tasted their urine. Doctors today, even though they may use sophisticated diagnostic equipment at their disposal, still apply these sensible techniques â^’ with the possible exception of tasting urine.

You, too, can learn to use your senses to detect warning signs of serious conditions and get medical help before they become full-blown diseases. You can:

Look at your hair, eyes, tongue, skin and nails. Listen to your voice and stomach sounds Smell your body wastes Taste your mouth and saliva Touch your hair, skin, nails Going from head to toe, here are some warning signs you may detect using your five senses. And keep in mind that any change in any of your senses can itself be a warning sign that something is out of kilter.

YOUR HAIR

When your hair feels more dry and brittle than usual, you may be over-processing it. Or, dry hair may signal an under-active thyroid or nutritional deficiency. If your hair looks like it’s thinning, and you’re a woman, you may have female-pattern baldness, which often runs in families. But it can also be a sign of an over-active thyroid or an early warning sign of diabetes. YOUR EARS

Hearing the sound of your heart beating inside your ears is actually normal, especially when lying down. But if you hear your heart beat or a throbbing sound in only one ear, it may be a warning sign of a heart murmur, high blood pressure, or other vascular disorders. When normal noises sound louder than usual, it may be a drug side effect or a sign that you’ve been drinking too many diet sodas that contain aspartame. Super sensitivity to sound may also be telling you that you have a magnesium deficiency, or an autoimmune or other serious disease. YOUR EYES

Seeing floaters, those spots or flecks that appear floating across your field of vision, is pretty common. But if you notice a sudden increase of floaters, you may have a retinal tear or even detachment (especially if you see flashing lights with the floaters), which requires immediate medical attention. Eyes that feel dry all the time, may be caused by low humidity, or be a drug side effect. Chronic dry eyes can also be a warning sign of some autoimmune diseases including rheumatoid arthritis, hyperthyroidism, and lupus. YOUR NOSE

While a nose that frequently looks red can be a tell-tale sign of excessive drinking, it can also be a red flag for the skin condition, rosacea. Interestingly, alcohol can trigger or worsen this condition. If your sense of smell is not as keen as it used to be, it may be due to an injury to your nose, a normal sign of aging, or a sign of any number of disorders including zinc deficiency, nasal polyps, diabetes, hypothyroidism, and multiple sclerosis. It can also be very early warning sign of Parkinson’s or Alzheimer’s disease. YOUR MOUTH

A terrible taste in your mouth that won’t wash away with mouthwash can be a side effect of such medications as antibiotics, antidepressants, antihypertensives, as well as some vitamins supplements. It can also be a sign of gum disease, a viral infection, gastrointestinal disorder, Bell’s palsy, or burning mouth syndrome, a rare condition that primarily affects menopausal women. A healthy tongue is covered with tiny bumps called papillae. If you tongue looks or feels very smooth and glassy, it may be telling you that you’re deficient in certain nutrients such as folic acid, vitamin B12, or iron. A smooth, red tongue may signal pernicious anemia or malabsorption syndrome, a condition in which the body cannot adequately absorb nutrients. YOUR TORSO

Hearing your stomach rumbling a lot may merely be the result of excess gas from a high-fiber diet or a diet containing too many carbohydrates, carbonated drinks, or artificial sweeteners. But excess gas may also signal lactose intolerance, food or drug allergies, or any number of gastrointestinal disorders. If your arms or legs frequently feel numb and tingly, it may be the result of a pinched nerve, or an important warning sign of several serious conditions such as adrenal disorder, a circulatory problem (peripheral arterial disease), or a nerve disorder (peripheral neuropathy). YOUR BODY WASTES

Whatever you eat can affect the odor (and color) of your urine. But urine that often smells sweet can be an important warning sign of undiagnosed or uncontrolled diabetes. What you eat can also affect the color (and sometimes the odor) of your stools. If your stools look very pale, it may be from eating a lot of rice, potatoes, and other white-colored foods. Medicine containing calcium can also cause pale stools. But persistently pale stools can signal a blockage of the bile ducts, which can be caused by tumors or liver diseases including hepatitis, cirrhosis, or liver cancer. YOUR SKIN & NAILS

If you feel a single, rough, or scaly patch of skin somewhere on your body —especially on your arm, leg, chest or other sun-exposed area — it may just be a scar. But you may have a pre-cancerous condition called solar (or actinic) keratosis. If you see dark horizontal streaks that look like (but aren’t) splinters under your finger or toenails, they may be splinter hemorrhages, a sign of trichinosis, a parasitic disease caused by eating undercooked pork or wild game. They can also be warning signs of psoriasis, peptic ulcers, kidney disease, lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, blood-clotting diseases, and endocarditis, an infection of the heart. You can see that checking your body periodically from head to toe can sometimes uncover important and often-missed warning signs of serious diseases. Keeping track of your body signs can be an important preventive health measure. It will also help you to actively participate in your health care and the diagnostic process as a partner with your doctor. And don’t forget to check out those near and dear to you; you may be able to pick up things that they themselves are unaware of.

If you do notice a disturbing body sign on either you or your loved ones ” no matter how trivial or embarrassing ” mention it to a doctor. Discussing annoying, bizarre, or embarrassing signs with a doctor will make it much easier to get a quick, accurate diagnosis when something is wrong, enabling you to get prompt treatment. It can also help you rule out serious conditions when all is well. Indeed, many of the body signs that may concern you will turn out to be perfectly normal and benign, or of no particular consequences, thus saving you further medical expense, time, and anxiety. Author Joan Liebmann-Smith, Ph.D., is a medical sociologist and award-winning medical writer. Her articles have appeared in American Health, Ms., Newsweek, Redbook, Self, and Vogue, and she has appeared on numerous television talk shows, including The Oprah Winfrey Show and The Today Show. She has a daughter, Rebecca, a cat, Fazelnut, and lives with her husband, Richard — also a writer — in New York City.

Written on 03 August 2007 by admin under Healthy Lifestyle, Medical News with No Comments

Lady Doctor Gets Death Threats for Revealing TOP SECRET Fat Loss Secret to General Public

A new breakthrough secret is all you now need in order to forever shed countless pounds, stay healthy, and add many years to your life!

A lady doctor from Arizona has blown the lid off the best-kept secret in weight loss ever discovered — and this has the whole diet food and drug industries turned upside down and in nothing less than a torrential uproar.

Her name is Dr Suzanne Gudakunst, and she’s marching to the beat of a different drum.

And no, nothing about her “secret” is difficult — nor does it require that you do something completely out of the ordinary or anything unnatural.
Instead, the Arizonian boasts proudly “…this is something that I caught onto just before 2002 when there was so much research and exploration going around concerning the human colon and digestive system working in harmony with nutritional absorption, and I started doing independent studies just to test things at first … but which I later expanded on after seeing some fantastic results.”

This same woman medical practitioner went on to accurately determine a definitive correlation between harmful plague and parasitic infestations of the human bowel tract, and people suffering chronic obesity — and who despite intense diet and exercise appeared to be unable to lose any weight whatsoever.

Over the course of six years the Arizona doctor developed a number of natural treatments for the removal of these same harmful, even life-threatening plaques and rapidly reproducing digestive parasites — and when applied to even worse-case patients suffering extreme obesity (98% of which were in immediate danger of dying) she saw a 100% effectiveness and success rate.

She then borrowed from her research on the severely obese, and applied the same strategies on milder cases of overweight persons — only to find the same effectiveness and quality results as described above (although the individual weight loss per subject wasn’t nearly as much as those obese patients 100 lbs to 200 lbs or more overweight).

So powerful is her secret that she’s able to reverse diabetes, rid illness altogether in people suffering from cancer (linked directly to poor diet and overweight factors), as well as an elimination of an entire spectrum of serious and otherwise life-threatening diseases.

Nearly 100% of all her case subjects were told in the alternative by “conventional doctors” that they either had just months or years to live, or they would never live a life anything resembling remotely a “normal” existence — yet after applying Dr Suzanne’s treatments saw a complete contradiction to others doctors’ prognoses.

Again, nothing about her secret is unnatural or requires someone to do any major action or modification in their lives.

In fact, her entire treatment is based completely on built-into-nature ‘protection agents’ scattered throughout the world in the form of select herbs, extracts, and organic constituents, and which can be found in a variety of plants — but when combined in specific combinations and carefully chosen amounts make for a solution to what is perhaps the world’s worst ever plague: OBESITY (and the illnesses and diseases resulting from it — or at least severely aggravated or exacerbated by it).

Now to everyone else’s great gain, whether suffering from just a few extra pounds and inches, to those extremely fat and overweight, this brave, bold lady doctor is releasing to the general public her secret for forever destroying the tight unrelenting closed-fist of obesity’s stronghold over the now more than 40% of Americans labeled obese, and others worldwide.

But she’s not promising any of us for how long.

Some experts and sociologists suggest that in the bigger scheme of things, the world will never tolerate a discovery of such magnitude, any more than it would be realistic to expect a car that runs on water (even if very real) to ever become commercially available to the general public for day-to-day use.

One well-respected and famous diet & wellness author wrote years ago that if anyone ever “truly unlocked the keys to permanent fat loss, they may actually suffer the same fate as JFK.”

Written on 29 October 2006 by admin under Medical News with No Comments